


Highway Blues & Show Tunes

by ShadowNekoinaTardis



Series: Tumblr Prompts [18]
Category: The Magnus Archives (Podcast)
Genre: Canon Ace Character, Do Not Archive, Flirting as friends, Food, M/M, Post-111 if Gerry survived, Small town restaurants, Tumblr Prompt, slowburn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-02
Updated: 2019-07-02
Packaged: 2020-06-02 20:08:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,003
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19448644
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShadowNekoinaTardis/pseuds/ShadowNekoinaTardis
Summary: In which Jon is in fact a Theater Nerd and that shows through when he goes on a road trip across America with Gerry to find the man’s body. He also falls in love with Gerry along the way.





	Highway Blues & Show Tunes

**Author's Note:**

> Prompt: Summer Dialogue #12, “Road trip?” “... road trip.”  
> For: @morelikeassassin  
> I watched Phantom of the Opera during part of the writing process so enjoy Jon and Gerry shenanigans. And thanks to Tini, Ana and the RQDBFC for helping with musicals. Demiro Jon in this fic (thanks Maeve), plus both Jon and Gerry are demiguys. Breakfast that Jon and Gerry have is based off what I had during vacation this year.  
> Thank you so much to [TransFurryLesbian](https://archiveofourown.org/users/TransFurryLesbian/pseuds/TransFurryLesbian) for being a wonderful beta.

Jon woke up to Gerry beside him, asleep. He smiled slightly in the stuffy motel bed they were sharing. Sunshine shone through the dusty curtains as he pushed a strand of hair out of Gerry’s face. He grinned as Gerry’s smokey grey eyes opened.  
“Morning handsome.”  
Gerry giggled and pinched Jon’s wrist. “So, road trip?”  
“...road trip…” Jon murmured, “for your body.”  
Gerry smiled, “And to see the sights on the way there since you’ve got the company card.”  
“Mmm… I’d almost forgotten about that.”  
Gerry grinned and grabbed Jon’s hand before getting off of the cheap bed.  
“Come on we gotta pack.”  
Jon nodded, “let’s try by nine?”  
“That works.”

Jon went to go get a shower while Gerry started packing; he tried to relax and not worry about the fact that he’d be in a car for several hours with an ‘incorporeal figure’. It wasn’t like he could make a bath at the moment so being able to relax his tense muscles was out of the question for now. He had to focus on why he was here: getting Gerry his body back, and then getting back home. To England.  
He focused on the warm water rushing through his hair and the scent of the cheap shampoo. He scrambled for the bar of soap as it slipped from his fingers, trying to catch it before it hit the floor all while trying to keep his hair out of his eyes. He hated showers.

He could hear Gerry zipping the last bag as he got out of the shower, drying himself off before slipping into a light blue button down and a pair of old jeans. He ran his fingers through his hair and opened the door to face Gerry once more. He put the clothes from the night before in the side pocket of the duffle bag and looked up into Gerry’s eyes.

“Ready?” Gerry asked.  
Jon nodded. “We should pick up breakfast on the way. don’t want to leave a trail.”  
Gerry smiled. “It’s not like Trevor and Julia are going to chase after us if they find out you took my page. They’re not going to notice it’s missing.”  
Jon nodded slowly, trying to relax by steadying his breath.  
“Yeah, yeah…” he grabbed the bags and the room key. “You sure everything is where it should be?”  
“Yep,” Gerry said, popping the ‘p’, and wrapping an arm around Jon. “Relax. We’re going to be fine.”

Jon nodded and opened the door, swallowing the lump in his throat as he passed through the threshold. He let out a shaky exhale as he headed towards the small check-in counter to check out. The clerk at the desk only motioned as to registering Jon as he signed out, and that was good.

They headed out the door to Jon’s rented mid-size sedan. It was old and slightly rusted over time, a dark grey color, but Jon knew it worked, and it would get them up to Pittsburgh without wasting too much money on gas. 

They stopped about an hour into the drive for breakfast at a small diner, name lit up by a small neon sign. ‘Anna Moon’s Café' It read. He looked over to Gerry only to find the man asleep in the seat beside him.

He turned off the CD player as the last notes of _What You Own_ from RENT faded out from the stereo. He smiled slightly before nudging Gerry awake.  
“Hey we made it. Ready to eat?” Jon asked, pulling the keys out of the ignition.  
Gerry yawned and pulled his hair up into a ponytail before getting out of the car leaving John to lock it. Together, they made their way inside.

“Table for two?” The waitress asked.  
Jon nodded, “Yes please.”  
Gerry grinned and whispered in Jon’s ear, “At least someone can see me.”  
They were placed at a corner table, providing them with visual of the majority of the café as the waitress placed the menus down.  
“I’ll be back shortly to take your orders, but can I get you two any drinks to start off with?  
“Water.” They responded at the same time.  
“Okay, I'll get those right out to you.” The waitress smiled and left to go get their drinks.

Jon gripped the menu tightly, scanning it intensely as Gerry looked out the window, watching the car for a moment before returning inside, looking over the menu for something that sounded appealing. 

Jon was honestly disappointed at the selection, although he didn't know what he was expecting. So, he simply ordered some waffles and a side of bacon. He looked at Gerry before pushing his menu towards the end of the table.  
“Did you figure out what you want?” Jon asked, holding Gerry’s hand for a moment.  
“Yes,” Gerry responded, “I’m thinking those waffles, egg and bacon sandwich.”  
“Same. So if you can’t eat we can take it as leftovers for lunch.”  
Gerry nodded, “That’s smart. Plus she won’t ask as many questions about it.”  
Jon nodded, “Plus it really does sound good.”

Gerry grinned, “So have you figured how many more musicals we’ll need to get through to get to Pittsburgh?”  
“Depends. We haven’t finished RENT yet so... if we do Jekyll and Hyde that’ll last us until at least West Virginia if I’m doing the math right with this map.”  
Gerry giggled, “I honestly never would’ve placed you to be a theater nerd.”  
Jon chuckled lowly, “I actually minored in it, so of course I’m well versed. Plus it got me a few credits for my English degree.”

He shrugged before noting that the waitress was coming back with their drinks, and had brought a notepad with her. She placed them down before pulling out a pen.  
“What would you like?”  
“We’d both like the waffle and egg sandwich with bacon, please?” Gerry prattled off, handing her the menus.

She nodded and took the menus, retreating back to the kitchen.  
Jon relaxed as the brunette left.  
“So I was thinking we try and avoid the mountains as much as possible. I don’t remember how oil pressure works over mountains,” Gerry said.  
Jon raised an eyebrow. “I’d forgotten to calculate that.”  
Gerry laughed violently and clutched his side.  
“Shit, are you okay?” Jon asked, reaching out for Gerry in concern.

Gerry grinned. “I’m fine,” he coughed a little before reaching for his glass of water. “I’m fine, trust me Jon.”  
Jon relaxed at the reassurance and focused on the map in front of him. He took out a paper atlas and a map on his phone, placing it next to the paper to check for accidents, construction and other general congestion.

Gerry watched adoringly as Jon struck unnecessary routes from the map. He watched Jon work and note something on a pad of paper as he went, perhaps converting the measurements. However, he couldn't be quite sure without looking over Jon’s shoulder to read it.

“So I’ve got everything figured out until we get into the outskirts of Pennsylvania. The problem is smoothing out the path to where the actual graveyard is.” Jon explained smoothly.  
They both looked up as the waitress came back with the food. Jon folded the map up and moved his gear before she could put the plates down.

“Thank you.” Jon nodded as he took his plate.  
Gerry echoed him as he accepted his plate from the waitress. They descended upon the food, trying to eat as quickly as possible so they could try and get out as soon as possible. They really didn't want to spend too much time driving in the dark later on, and they wanted to catch the earliest flight to Pittsburgh as possible.

“It’s gonna be fun getting you home," Jon quipped as he swallowed another mouthful. "You know, unless you happen to have a passport in your grave,” Jon thought for a second. “Even then, it might not even be valid, seeing as how you’ve been dead for a good few years now.”  
Gerry snorted, his mouthful threatening to find its way up his nose. “You could call Elias and get some paperwork faxed to the British Embassy. We could even pick it up on the way!”  
Jon groaned into his sandwich and nodded. “That's not a wholly terrible plan, actually. I might give him a call before we leave.”  
He wanted to roll his eyes at Gerry but it was a smart idea. He was just irked he didn't think of it first. “We could also try for an emergency travel document?”  
“That too.”

They finished their food and Jon sent a text to Elias about the situation, so that if he needed to call Elias about it, he would already know what was happening. That is, if he didn't already know. Almost instantly he got a response back. Elias assured Jon that he could patch Gerry’s old paperwork through, but not before mentioning that Gerry was legally considered dead. But, he would do it. For a price, of course.

Jon sighed and texted back that that was fine. He wanted to bring Gerry back no matter the cost. Having someone who’d dealt with prior rituals on the team would be priceless. Even if Gerry called himself the “monster manual”. Elias simply left him on read. Agitated, Jon paid for the bill, tipping generously.

They left quickly. Jon tried not to stare at Gerry’s face for too long. But he couldn't help himself, as he began to notice the dusting of freckles across his cheeks and nose, which lead him to his piercings, along the bridge and septum of his nose. He shook his head free of the thoughts, pausing long enough to unlock the car and get into the driver’s seat.  
Gerry grinned as the CD player turned back on. _Finale A_ ’s piano entrance began to play through the speakers of the car as they headed back onto the highway, the small town disappearing into the background as they headed north towards the British Embassy.

They switched seats in Virginia so that Jon could rest his eyes and legs in the back, the CDs had been switched, true to Jon' word, to Jekyll and Hyde and _Possessed_ was humming through the car as they left one highway only to enter another. Traffic had been hit by that weird midday rush, and now Gerry had to deal with a lot more crazy maneuvers than Jon had. They continued on, however, and the sun began to curl back towards the horizon as they made it closer to D.C.

Jon was asleep next to him as he drove into the capital, and he didn’t wake until Gerry parked at the British Embassy.  
“Jon… Jon we’re here," Gerry gently shook him awake. "Can you make sure the paperwork has already gotten here?”  
“Mmm… yeah I can text Elias about that.”  
Gerry nodded and pushed Jon’s long brown hair out of his face, the grey streak shining up at him.  
“He says it shouldn’t take more than an hour to go through,” Jon responded while unbuckling himself and opened the door, “I don’t expect it to take that long, but I guess we can have lunch now rather than worry about the food spoiling in the heat.”  
Gerry pointed to a park bench nearby, “What about there?”  
“Perfect.” Jon smiled as he helped Gerry out of the seat.

“How was your nap?”  
“Refreshing, but my back hurts a tad now. I think I slept on my neck wrong," He reached up and rubbed it gently. Gerry chuckled, “I thought so. I would’ve woke you up sooner, but bad sleep is better than none at all.”

“That’s true. You should ask Martin all about my sleeping habits when we get back to London.”  
Gerry tried to stifle a grin as he locked up the car after getting the to-go bag out of the back.  
“What?” He said, “I think that’s funny.”  
“It’s not really, it’s sad the lack of sleep I get from being the Archivist, especially with the Unknowing so soon.”  
Gerry nodded and handed Jon the food. Most of what was left was hash browns and the other waffle sandwich that Jon hadn’t finished. Thankfully Jon had packed some plastic cutlery from the restaurant before they’d left.

“So after this we just go in there,” He nodded towards the embassy. “Elias has taken care of the rest. Beside signatures of course.”  
Gerry nodded, “Well I hope the body recovery pans out, otherwise you owe Elias an empty favor.”  
Jon swallowed the lump in his throat, “How do you _know_ I made a deal with him?”  
“That’s how Elias works. Deal with a price.”

Jon nodded slowly, letting a shaky breath out, “Yeah… I hope it does.”  
He dove into the unfinished sandwich and watched the birds so he didn’t have to pretend that he was comfortable with the situation.  
“Trust me, it’ll be fine either way. I’ll either go down as the first ghost in history to have a passport or you’ll bring me back with you to England.”  
That made Jon chuckle a little, even as Gerry was holding his unoccupied hand. He smiled a little as he rubbed his thumb over the scars dotting his hand.  
“Jude do that?”  
“Yeah. She, uh, wasn’t as trustworthy as I thought she was.”  
Gerry nodded, “Have you tried that lotion for pregnancy stretch marks? I’ve heard it works wonders on healing things.”

Jon snorted, “I’ll think about it when we get back to London. You can tell me all about it then, okay?”  
They were almost done eating, and Gerry was ready to go get his paperwork fixed up, and then get a new passport. Jon was more worried about having to deal with people in the building.

“Okay, so Elias told me there's a specific desk we're supposed to go to because, well, y’know,” Jon said.  
Gerry chortled a little before rolling all the trash into the bag and stood up.  
“Ready?”  
“I guess. I mean hopefully Elias can call them and just speed this up.”  
“ _Jon._ No.”  
“Sorry, I just don’t really do well with this side of things.”  
“Ah, I see.”

Jon nodded and threw the trash way before opening the door, letting Gerry go in ahead of him.He made sure to shut the door quietly behind them. He watched the surveillance cameras for a moment before catching up to the poorly dressed goth, wearing a trench coat in nearly 35c weather.

Thankfully there wasn’t a line, and the nice man at the desk was able to process the documents that Elias sent over quickly. Not even an hour later, they were back on the road with Gerry’s new passport.

“Thank you,” Gerry cooed, ruffling Jon’s hair as they walked back to the car. “Thank you so much for taking the time to listen to me, and take the time to understand what I was dealing with.”  
“Any time,” Jon whispered into Gerry’s ear as he moved a bit to brush a crumb off of Gerry’s cheek.  
Ah, he could’ve kissed him, but he wanted to wait until Gerry had a corporeal body. He knew he was lying to himself about the emotions in his heart for the other man.  
“Jon?”  
“Yeah? Oh sorry you had a crumb and I thought I’d clean it…”  
“Jon, calm down…” Gerry reached out a hand and gently rested it on Jon’s chin.  
Jon closed his eyes as Gerry leant in to kiss him, ready for the warm contact, and only pleasantly surprised as what felt like warm fog hit his face as Gerry kissed him, Gerry sighed and Jon chuckled.

“Next time, Gerry, next time.”  
Gerry nodded and sighed. “To Pittsburgh it is then.”  
Jon unlocked the car and got into the drivers side, starting up the car and Gerry buckled up next to him, passport in hand. He put the CD back on and _Streak of Madness_ began. He chuckled a bit before reversing and exiting the embassy.  
Gerry watched as they exited D.C. and yawned a little.  
“You can sleep, it’s okay. We’ve got about four and a half hours before we get there.”  
Gerry yawned again and nodded. “Okay.”  
Jon smiled before they got back on the road and headed out to the highway again, stopping for gas right before getting on the highway proper. He focused on the music and not the fact that Gerry was snoring lightly under the currant of violin.  
He knew Hairspray was next on the CD track, which would last them another hour and then Falsettos would carry them within Pennsylvania. He smiled and focused on the road ahead of him and made sure to listen for sirens in case he had to deal with an accident along the way.  
…  
_Later in a Pittsburgh cemetery_  
Jon woke Gerry up when they arrived at the small parking lot.  
“Body time, Gerry.”  
Gerry chuckled and reached up, trying to kiss Jon again before they pulled apart to get out of the car. He relaxed as they entered the gate and headed to the Keay Mausoleum to find Gerry’s body.  
“We’ll be looking for “Gerard Michael Keay III”, by the way.”  
Jon chuckled, “Pretentious much?”  
“Only a little.” Gerry remarked sarcastically.  
Jon continued laughing as he pulled a small kit bag out of the car. The cemetery was closing soon, so they had to work quickly to find the mausoleum. They made quick work of finding it, the whole job easier seeing as how it was the only mausoleum in the whole cemetery. Jon pulled the crowbar out and made work of the door, the padlock falling silently to the grass.  
Gerry watched and held the stone as Jon worked the crowbar from side to side, prying the slab further and further ajar. It creaked slowly and Gerry slipped in as soon as it was possible.  
“Come on Jon.” Gerry said from within the granite.  
Jon followed and caught up with Gerry, who was standing in front of his vault.  
“So this is it, time to find out if we can reanimate a corpse.”  
“It’ll work Jon, just crack it open.”  
Jon stretched and hooked the crowbar under the edge, grunting as the granite bean to splinter as he went. He’d began to sweat by the time he managed to get the lid off from the rest of the vault. Gerry held him back so the falling granite slab didn't knock him out cold.  
“Ready for the moment of truth?” Gerry asked, nervous energy pulsing through his body.  
“Yeah.” was all Jon could muster.  
He watched as Gerry skirted his body, almost afraid of it, fingers dancing just shy of his motionless corporeal form. But then he touched it, and a glow began to spread across the corporeal body where they met. Gerry breathed a sigh of relief and let himself fall, until he was engulfed in the light. And then Gerry opened his eyes and sat up as the other man’s body rushed up to meet him for a kiss.

“Good to see you, love,” Jon said before kissing Gerry again, “Guess we should go get dinner and book a hotel for the night?”  
“I can’t wait to get out of here, get some new clothes, and fall asleep next to you.”  
Jon giggled before pulling Gerry out of the vault, out of the mausoleum and kissed him softly against the granite of the building. Gerry wrapped a hand around Jon’s back before pulling him in deeper as the sun began to set behind them. He ran his fingers through Jon’s silky chestnut hair and hugged the other man when the kiss ended.  
“So dinner date?”  
“Yes please.”  
Jon smiled as he held Gerry’s hand, walking him back to the car with the crowbar back in the bag. He turned on the map to find a nearby restaurant that was open so they could get dinner. he'd figure out the hotel and flight back later.  
“So, uh, we should probably talk this through before getting too far into it without discussing a few things first.” Jon said.  
“Of course, communication is important especially with budding relationships and boundaries are important especially with our line of work. Oh I wonder if Elias will remploye me? Or if I get a different job.”  
Jon giggled, “Of course, so I’m not into sex, at all. I don’t find it appealing and rather find it to be rather…”  
“Disgusting?”  
“Yeah.”  
There was rain pattering against the glass of the car as they talked.  
“So I don’t want to lead you on about anything before we even get started.”  
“I don’t like it that much either so it’s fine, Jon, really it’s fine.”  
Jon smiled at that, genuinely and tightened his grip on Gerry’s hand.  
“Thank you, thank you so much.”  
Gerry grinned and released Jon’s hand so he could drive.  
“So what are you fine with, let’s start with that?”  
“I’m fine with touching, preferably above the belt unless it’s spooning. Kissing’s fine, I’m not great with hugs, unless I’m feeling comfortable with them.”  
Gerry nodded, “So cuddles are good?”  
“Yep, but I also like for it to be communicated when it’s gonna happen. Like a, ‘hey I’m going to kiss you, is that okay,’ is music to my ears.”  
Gerry smiled, “Of course.”  
Jon parked the car outside of the restaurant, and they paused for a moment before opening the doors, running quickly to the awning to escape from the rain. It was a local burger joint so they’d be fine finding something to eat.

“I can seat you gentlemen over here if that’s okay with you?” The waiter greeted them as they entered the building.  
Gerry nodded before they were lead to their seat in the corner.  
The waiter asked about drinks before leaving them to look at their menus to try and figure out what to order.  
They ended up with simple cheeseburgers and called it a night after Jon confirmed both the flight and the hotel.

It was a short dinner because Jon wanted to get back to the hotel before the rain got worse and completely drenched the clothing they were wearing now. The hotel he’d picked was a bit better than the one they’d been in before, but not by much. They only pulled out the bag of essentials before going into the hotel.

“I scheduled the flight for 5am because it would allow us to sleep on the way back.”  
“You mean hopefully reduce the jet lag?”  
“That too.”  
Gerry nodded. “Do you want first shower or can I take it?”  
“Go right ahead.”  
Gerry grinned. “Thanks.”  
“No problem.”

Jon pulled off his soaked button down and laid it over the radiator, he checked how long it would take to get from the hotel to the airport and factored in security. He sighed. It would still be three hours no matter when they left. He listened to Gerry humming in the shower and yawned.

It wasn’t even that late but it had been more driving than he’d done in the past three months slammed into one day. He sat down in a chair by the window and waited until he heard the shower stop.

“Your turn.” Gerry said.  
“Thanks.”  
“I’ll get the bed ready while you shower.”  
Jon grinned before heading into the bathroom to shower. The mirror had fogged up so much that he couldn't even see his scars and he didn't know if Gerry had done that intentionally or just by accident. It was nice though. Not being able to see them staring back at him, even if it was just for a moment. He grinned before turning the water on.

He fell asleep next to Gerry about a half hour later curled into Gerry’s side.It was so nice to actually sleep next to someone who understood his work and was so confident. It was going to be fun when they got back to London.

**~Fin**


End file.
